Piedmont Office Realty Trust hopes to add another office building to the growing central Perimeter development pipeline. Atlanta-based Piedmont (NYSE: PDM) wants to develop Glenridge Highlands III, a planned 300,000-square-foot mid-rise tower along the Glenridge Connector overlooking Georgia 400. It would be the third building at Glenridge Highlands, which was first developed in the late 1990s. It remains one of the most visible projects along Georgia 400 and home to First Data Corp.

The "King" and "Queen" buildings, the two iconic office towers looming over the Atlanta Perimeter and Georgia 400 for years, have found a new buyer in a deal that could range from $480 million to $500 million. Stamford, Conn.-based Building and Land Technology has reached an agreement to buy the towers, which are part of the more than 2-million-square-foot Concourse Corporate Center development. It would be the first major investment for Building and Land Technology in Atlanta.

Manuel's Tavern, Atlanta's signature gathering spot for journalists, politicians and community activists, is being sold. But don't panic. Manuel's will remain — in a refurbished condition — and it will still be operated by the Maloof family. Manuel's Properties is selling about 1.6 acres, including the Manuel's building — a Poncey Highland landmark — to developer Green Street Properties. "The plan for the tavern is to refurbish the building," said Green Street Properties President Katharine Kelley, who left the developer Jamestown last year to re-launch Green Street and focus on smaller, mixed-use projects in walkable neighborhoods.

The last time Atlanta was experiencing such a large wave of urban reinvestment, Todd Oglesby was just starting his career in the development business. It was around the time of the 1996 Olympics, when public dollars were pouring into the city to fund new infrastructure. Oglesby had taken a job with Winter Construction Co., because he knew there were plenty of high-profile projects in the pipeline, and he wanted to be out working on them, not stuck behind a desk, wearing a suit and answering the phones. On his first big assignment he found himself in the middle of a historic renovation project at the Georgia State Capitol. After a few years in planning, the $30 million renovation was finally put on the fast-track after pieces of the Capitol's plaster ceiling began falling onto the General Assembly members.

As an office market, downtown Atlanta hasn't been as hot as Midtown, Buckhead or the central Perimeter over the past decade. Lately, however, downtown is creating a lot of buzz about its tourism industry, new apartment projects and investment in incubator space. That momentum is spreading to the office market. Late last year, Cousins Properties Inc. (NYSE: CUZ) was exploring a joint-venture on its One Ninety One Peachtree Tower, and technically the Atlanta real estate company didn't take the option of selling the tower off the table either. Now, consider its new strategy for the 50-story tower — and what it says about downtown.

An Atlanta development team wants to launch the next phase of the Alpharetta City Center project, an attempt to create a more walkable downtown filled with restaurants, boutiques, apartments and single-family homes. The $80 million development could break ground as early as this fall, depending on the speed of the zoning process. The first restaurants could open in 2016, with the remainder of the project targeted for completion the following year.

"We'll be watching to see how the industry responds to the labor challenges," said Doug Rieder, president, Sterling Risk Advisors. “We have not heard of project delays yet,” said Ken Simonson, chief economist with the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC).